H Hayek, Huda was here, Allen & Unwin, April 2023, 277 pp., RRP $14.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781761068430
Huda Was Here is a story of adventure, hijinks and most of all, family.
This is the second in a series that began with Huda and Me, but I haven’t read that. That said, I found Huda was Here to be thoroughly engrossing and a delight to read. Most importantly, I felt like I wasn’t missing out on anything that might have been in book 1.
Huda and Akeal, her older brother, come from a Lebanese-Muslim family, and their culture and faith is part of the story as much as planning and getting into trouble. The diverse secondary characters and community are also a marvellous, integral part of this book.
In Huda was Here, Huda and Akeal’s father, Ibrahim, loses his job as a security guard because crime seems to have gone down in their community. Huda plans to get his job back by sneaking out at night and under cover of darkness, to do all sorts of mischief… which will cause her father’s bosses to hire him back.
Very logical, in her mind at least, and she ropes her brother Akeal into her plans.
What follows is a story about well, lots of mischief, crime, and sibling fights, but more than anything, this is a story about family. As much as Akeal and Huda fight and snark at each other, it’s clear how close this family is and how much they love each other – and how much they miss their father.
Given the blurb though, I assumed that the story was from Huda’s POV, but it is from Akeal’s instead. He’s her older brother, and much more cautious than the fearless Huda – even though he does go along with her plan. He provides a grounding perspective to Huda’s antics, which may appeal to older readers.
The story is filled with heart and love of family, and will draw young readers in right away.
Reviewed by Verushka Byrow
